I don't want to conquer witches anymore.

"Okay, what should I do?"

“Use this thing to cast a spell and create something that can immediately attract amber.” Joseph stroked his chin. “How about this, you use illusion magic to create a naked Duke.”

Natasha and Kazuki: "?"

Joan nodded excitedly: "No problem, Joan!"

Having said that, she used the magical mechanical device as a staff and cast a spell inside the Gate of Truth, creating a naked, handsome man named Duke in the Sea of ​​Knowledge that no one could see. Since Joan had never seen Duke naked, she randomly found a naked handsome man in her material library and replaced Duke's head on it.

Less than ten seconds later, Joan felt her illusion shatter, and a figure darted in through the Gate of Truth. Far from being corrupted by knowledge, the figure was lively and indignant, shouting:

"Who just made that thing?! Duke's naked body is never that ugly!"

Everyone: ?

Chapter 329 A Second Blossom

Duke and his group returned to the streets of the floating city.

The core of perfectly completing the witch game "The Little Mermaid" is simple: uncover the secrets of its worldview, move from the virtual world to the real world, and then stop the constantly running, simulating, and nurturing virtual game pods that create the Song of Souls. When the last virtual game pod stops, they naturally return to the floating city, bringing back the last relic of this small world: the seed of the Song of Souls and Alice.

Duke was initially nervous, but he quickly realized that Carol was not staying where she was, and even the presiding witch was nowhere to be seen. However, this was not incomprehensible. The ratio of time flow between the witch game and the real world was not fixed. The intervention of the floating city officials only prevented the ratio of time flow from becoming too exaggerated and causing a dreamlike phenomenon, but the chaos of time flow still objectively existed.

Carol wasn't sure when Duke and his group would emerge, so she simply stopped waiting and didn't even set up an ambush, seemingly completely unconcerned about them. Ironically, Duke's wanted poster was plastered on the wall nearby, the stark contrast to reality creating a sense of absurdity.

But Duke didn't find it strange.

Why did Carol's attack force them into the Witch Game, the very world that led Ida to the path of mythology?

In Duke's mind recently, the word "coincidence" has become almost synonymous with Carol's "conspiracy."

“So, there’s no point in worrying so much.” Duke shook his head and looked at Alice beside him. Since they woke her up from the virtual game pod, she had maintained a somewhat bewildered expression, and now, looking at the world before her, she had an almost otherworldly look in her eyes. Seeing her gaze, Duke subconsciously asked, “Alice, are you alright?”

"No...it's nothing. It's just that after being a mermaid for so long, I suddenly remembered that I'm actually a human." Alice looked down at her intact legs. She was wearing a tattered hospital gown, completely different from the mermaid who only wore two seashells in the deep sea. But this was the real her. "I'm not used to it. I'm not even used to an environment without seawater. I'm not used to breathing fresh air with my mouth, nose and lungs."

"It's okay, you'll get used to these things gradually."

Duke sighed, unable to think of a way to comfort Alice. She had just learned that her world had been destroyed and that she was the only survivor. Her plan to save the world, which she had worked on for thousands of years, had ultimately failed. Such a heavy blow was enough to destroy a person's will. Alice was only a little confused and depressed at this moment, which was already quite strong.

It seemed that Ida also felt it wasn't good for the divine messenger she favored to continue in this mental state, so she put her hands on her hips and her serious voice resonated in the hearts of her companions: "It's okay, you're not used to breathing, I can help you turn this function off—you can survive without breathing from now on, how about that?"

"Huh?"

Alice was clearly stunned, while Duke's lips twitched. He quickly reached out and grabbed God by the back of his collar, lifting the impolite brat up and scolding him irritably, "Is that how you comfort someone? You're such a chatty idiot!"

Ida struggled against Duke's clutches, uttering her displeased thoughts: "My divine messenger is not that fragile! You're just spouting nonsense!"

"Pfft." Alice couldn't help but laugh out loud at the interaction between Duke and Ida. She quickly walked to Ida's side, took Ida from Duke's hands, and hugged Ida in her arms. "Yes, I'm not that fragile. As a divine messenger, I have to protect our lovely god."

"that is!"

Duke looked at Alice, who had perked up, and at Ida, who seemed like a real child again, and slowly exhaled. Annie then appeared out of nowhere behind him, reached out and squeezed Duke's shoulder, and whispered in his ear, "Shouldn't we go home?"

"Yeah, it's time to go home... Hey! What are you doing?!"

Anne took a step back with lightning speed, and innocently spread her hands as Duke turned to glare at her. From her innocent appearance, who could tell that she had just boldly licked Duke's earlobe?

Duke looked at her, his lips twitching slightly, and repeated irritably, "Alright, it's time to go home!"

Without waiting for his reply, he took the lead and headed towards the location set up by the Enchanting West Coast. His companions naturally followed behind him, and the group moved very quickly, soon arriving at their destination.

Then, Duke and the others realized a problem... a person they had forgotten.

Duke and Annie glared at the armored witch who was silently following at the back of the group, and questioned her in unison:

Why are you still here?

"?" Stephanie retorted with a wronged expression, "Didn't you say you'd let me go?!"

"We didn't let you go, so why didn't you just run away on your own?!" Duke's eyes widened. Stephanie had been following the group so naturally that he had forgotten she was actually their prisoner—honestly, if she had run away before Duke could react, they wouldn't have bothered chasing her. "Are you stupid?! You just ran away, and we turned a blind eye and let you go?"

"How dare you swear at me?" Stephanie felt even more aggrieved. "I'd rather die than be humiliated... Shall I leave now?"

“No.” Annie frowned, her voice sharp with menace. “Now that you’re here, I can’t let you go back.”

Stephanie, who had just been feeling extremely wronged, suddenly trembled three times. She still vividly remembered how monstrous Anne was in the witch game, and she had no doubt about Anne's ruthlessness as a necromancer. She subconsciously reached out to put on a few layers of armor to give herself some sense of security, but quickly realized that Duke was right next to her.

The moment this guy touched her, all her stacked magical armor vanished instantly. This undeniable fact meant that stacking armor could no longer provide Stephanie with a sense of security.

She closed her eyes resignedly: "Let them kill me or torture me, it's just silencing them, isn't it?!"

"Don't scare her, Annie." Duke rolled his eyes, reached out and patted Annie, then turned and took something out of his inventory, handing it to Stephanie, who had her eyes closed. "Okay, put this on."

Stephanie opened her eyes shakily and looked at the smooth object in her hand—a blue strapless swimsuit…the very swimsuit Duke had given her in the Witch Game. He had given it to her in the virtual world; in other words, he had never given it to Stephanie in the real world. It had always stayed in his inventory.

The armored witch's face turned bright red instantly. She resignedly closed her eyes again, shouting "pervert" in disgust, and then, with a determined heart, she ripped off her upper body clothes.

This time, Duke, who was prepared in advance, covered his own eyes before Annie could come over and cover them.

"Hmph, you're smart to know what's good for you." Anne crossed her arms, turned to Stephanie, and muttered, "I need to figure out a way to get rid of this idiot..."

"Waaaaah!"

Stephanie, who was still putting on her swimsuit with her eyes closed, suddenly felt a chill run down her spine.

Chapter 330 The Shopkeeper's Guide to Evaluating Taro

Who is Mr. Duke to Zun?

After analyzing and thinking for a while, Xiaolongniang came to a simple conclusion.

Clearly, Duke is now her boss or partner.

Duke sponsored her development work, providing not only funding but also occasional opportunities and resources that money couldn't buy otherwise. In return, she used her skills to contribute the results Duke needed. They achieved a win-win situation of equal exchange and got along very harmoniously.

To create a more comfortable and pleasant work environment, Zun has been focusing on interpersonal relationships lately, aiming to better integrate into harmonious working relationships. For Zun, the most important interpersonal relationship in his current work environment is undoubtedly with his boss's wife.

Her boss, Duke, has a rather complicated relationship with women, so much so that most of his friends are women, and they are all connected to him through romantic relationships. In such a workplace environment, things can obviously change drastically due to changes in emotions, and simple jealousy can destroy an originally harmonious work environment.

As one of the top ten employees, Xiaolongniang believes that helping the boss solve problems and handling family conflicts are also things that must be done.

Therefore, the thread she created was constantly analyzing the various candidates for the position of boss lady.

Amber, Cecil, Anne, Ida, Little Black...

In Zun's opinion, among the people around Duke, the only ones who can be called "boss's wife" are Amber, Cecil, and Annie. The others are not that close to Duke.

Among the top three candidates for the landlady, Amber undoubtedly holds the advantage. Cecil is probably the closest to her, but according to Zun's analysis, Anne has a much better chance of winning this battle of women than Cecil—that stupid woman Cecil is no match for Anne.

Therefore, it is very important to maintain a good relationship with Miss Amber, and it is also very important not to arouse Miss Anne's suspicion or jealousy. As for Cecil... whatever, it doesn't matter.

"Miss Amber and Mr. Duke have the deepest bond. It's clear that they trust each other and are willing to give everything they have for one another. At the same time, Miss Amber is very beautiful, and as a princess of the Elf Kingdom, her status is a perfect match for the outstanding Mr. Duke."

"However, I noticed a problem with their interactions: Duke is far more protective of Amber than he is of Cecil and Miss Anne. This is clearly because of Miss Amber's relatively weak level, even though she possesses the best escape ability among the top three candidates. Miss Amber has vaguely realized this and is therefore feeling anxious. So helping her improve her strength will help me get along better with her and integrate into the group more easily."

"So when Miss Amber came to me and asked if there was a way to improve herself quickly, I suggested that she find Natasha, the Witch of Truth, and try to enter the Gate of Truth."

In the alluring West Coast, the mechanical dragon girl in a swimsuit sits obediently at the wooden table outside the cabin, speaking to Little Black (in cat form) who is lying on the table:

"Of course, there are risks involved, but after analyzing Miss Amber's abilities and the data on the Gate of Truth, I believe this action plan is entirely feasible. Miss Amber has a greater than 40% chance of getting what she wants, and the possibility of encountering danger and being unable to return to the real world is only 15%. Even if she encounters that 15% danger, Miss Amber will most likely be able to hold out until Mr. Duke arrives."

"Meow." Little Black listened to Zun's story with great interest, raising its paw. "Although everything was within your calculations, I think you're worried about Amber Meow!"

"Why?" The cute little dragon girl tilted her head. "I wasn't worried about this feature."

"You keep repeating that amber is safe, but that doesn't mean you're worried about low-probability events happening, meow!"

Little Black shook its head and said that after experiencing the Shadow Lab in the Turtle Soup Witch game, its intelligence level has improved a lot recently. It has changed from a silly little black cat that only knew how to sleep in to a little black cat that speaks eloquently, but still likes to sleep in.

However, it remained carefree and showed no concern for Amber, who was taking a risk, and continued to ask with great interest, "What about Anne and Cecil?"

The Dragon Lady calmly said, "Miss Anne and Mr. Duke are very compatible in their way of thinking, and she is one of the few people who can understand Mr. Duke's ideas. At the same time, her figure is also relatively in line with Mr. Duke's preferred aesthetic. I think she is very suitable to be Mr. Duke's partner. But..."

"but?"

"Because of Miss Anne's extreme personality, if she becomes my boss, the work environment will probably be very unpleasant. So I personally prefer Miss Amber to win, or to maintain the status quo."

"So, you're an amber fanatic, meow." Little Black rolled over, scratched its belly with its paw, and then remembered that there was still one person whose choice of vessel hadn't been discussed, so it continued to ask, "What about Cecil?"

Cecil.

Zun's eyes flickered. Of the three candidates, she had known Cecil the longest, but they were also the least compatible. So, she didn't hesitate to voice her outrageous opinion:

"I don't think people with flat chests are qualified to participate in the discussion."

Just as Little Dragon Girl began to speak, Cecil, who was wearing a tubular swimsuit to conceal his lack of feminine features, finished his busy day and returned to the Enchanting West Coast, where he happened to overhear Little Dragon Girl's outrageous remarks.

Cecil: "?"

Guangbao lowered her head blankly, her gaze fixed on her bare toes. She reached out and placed them on her chest, but finding nothing, she fell into even deeper confusion. After a long while, Guangbao ran crying into the little wooden house, calling out as she ran:

"Flat...flat chest, what did I ever do to you?!"

Xiao Hei and Xiao Long Niang exchanged a glance, then shook their heads in unison, giving up on the idea of ​​comforting her—Guang Bao was easygoing and had been persecuted for many years, so she would be fine after crying for a while.

Cecil's arrival home seemed to foreshadow the return of everyone, and soon Duke and his group returned to the alluring West Coast, even with two more women than before they left.

"Hey, Zun, Xiao Hei, let me introduce you. This is Alice, and this is Stephanie. They'll probably be staying here for a while."

Little Dragon Girl began to scrutinize the two new candidates for boss lady. Just as she was about to start analyzing them, something unexpected happened... or rather, something unexpected happened to everyone present.

This whole affair began with the return of amber.

Chapter 331 The Actions of the Perverted Elf

"Hey, Zun, Xiao Hei, let me introduce you. This is Alice, and this is Stephanie. They'll probably be staying here for a while."

Duke led everyone (including himself), who had changed into their swimsuits, into the alluring West Coast. However, a noble and adorable goddess like Ida was clearly not going to be persecuted by Duke into changing into a swimsuit that didn't suit her status—she simply transformed back into the Mute Dagger and ran back into Duke's body. Duke and Annie, on the other hand, had gotten used to wearing swimsuits during this time, so changing clothes didn't bother them at all.

Therefore, the psychological burden fell entirely on the two newcomers, or more precisely, on the armored witch Stephanie. As an outsider, Alice was unaware of the normal ethics and concepts of shame in this world, and she felt no psychological burden when changing clothes. Thus, the psychological burden became the exclusive domain of the only normal person present.

Before entering the alluring West Coast, Stephanie saw Duke as no different from the extravagant and dissolute old man, Mr. Dong. Even when Duke explained that it was a condition for using the prop, Stephanie didn't believe him at all.

Thus, the two newcomers appeared in completely different states in the eyes of Zun and Xiao Hei.

Alice, dressed in a bold and daring swimsuit, curiously surveyed the beach but didn't even glance at the azure sea. She skipped and hopped across the sand as if she hadn't used her legs in centuries. Stephanie, on the other hand, trembled as she looked around, constantly glancing warily at Duke, fearing he might suddenly do something perverse.

However, for Duke and Annie, returning home felt wonderful, especially for Annie. She couldn't wait to find her arch-rival Cecil and boast about her heroic act of kissing Duke—of course, she couldn't hide this from Amber either. Annie was a woman of action, and if she wanted to steal a man, she wanted to do it openly and honestly!

Just then, Amber suddenly appeared in front of everyone. Her appearance was so abrupt that everyone realized she had teleported there... But here's the problem: she wasn't wearing a swimsuit, but normal clothes.

"Aha! I knew you were lying to us, Duke! I knew you were just a perverted lecher who wanted to see my beautiful body!"